Lehigh County Budget notebook

Posted on October 29, 2015 by admin

Election time craziness.
First, as always during election time folks try to color conversations with hyper partisan lenses. Problem is over the last year most county discussions really were not partisan in nature. At least between the 9 County commissioners. 7 of which are Republicans who are not always on the same end of the ideological spectrum and 2 Democrats. I know this because I attend meetings. Not religiously. But enough to get a flavor. Ones I don’t attend I frequently watch online.

With this years budget? There was only 1 dissenter with an 8-1 vote.

Cumulative impacts.
Last years tax cut was derisively called a “happy meal”. This year a “pizza”. No matter what silly labeling each year the fact remains – after Don Cunningham’s (D) 16% tax increase of 2011 Lehigh County has since given either a rebate or tax cut 3 of the last 4 years. Just like small tax increases add up over time, so do small tax decreases.

Lehigh County tax cuts and rebates since 2011 increase.
2011 – Don Cunningham’s (D) 16% tax increase.
Since then over last 4 years…
2013 – Tax Cut of 3.0M. Rebate of 3.5M or a 44 dollar reduction
2014 – 0
2015 – Tax cut of 1.25M or 8 dollars for average homeowner
2016 – Tax cut of 2M or 14.21 for average homeowner

So yes, another “small” tax cut. But when you find “small” tax cuts year after year it adds up. And that’s just the County in a silo. Last year every Lower Macungie homeowner got a 19 dollar homestead break. For those at or under the median home value you will get your second in 2 years in 2016.

For some? It’s now a couple happy meals. For others? Maybe 2 tanks of gas. But for some the impacts are more serious. For ex. $40 helps feeds two seniors on fixed income for a weeks time. $40 helps a single mom feed a newborn for 2 weeks. It all adds up.

All told today? Just over 6 million in cuts over 5 years with zero measurable decreases in services. Sounds like a job well done to me.

“Rainy day/reserve fund”.
Commissioners have been criticized for “dipping into the rainy day fund to balance the budget”. Ok let’s examine that.

First, unlike Lower Macungie Township the County doesn’t have a fund balance policy. (Maybe they should consider one?) The next best measure is the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). They recommend 20%. This budget maintains that. 106M budget with a 20%+ reserve fund. Including and prior to this year Lehigh County has either met or exceeded recommended reserves. Prudent financial management.

Other Counties already borrowing money because of state budget impasse.
Lehigh County is not. They may very well eventually have to depending on how long Harrisburg gridlock lasts. But to date it’s not been considered. Others counties have had to. This again demonstrates the excellent fiscal shape Lehigh is in.

Takeaway.
I think the makeup of the current board of Commissioners is excellent. A very high functioning board under the leadership of Brad Osborne. The passed budget reduced taxes for the 3rd time in 4 years. The reserve fund is still at or above 20%. The counties bottom line finances are healthy.

In a climate where for better or worse “throw the bums out” is a rally cry.. In Lehigh County? I think stability is a good thing. Is there friction between the Executive and Commissioners at times? Yes. But isn’t that the way American democracy is supposed to work? As for the 9 Commissioners? I think the makeup of the board is excellent as it stands.

Infiltration and Inflow 101 – What residents need to know.

Posted on October 27, 2015 by admin

What: I&I stands for “Inflow and Infiltration”. In laymans terms this means an unwanted intrusion of “clear water” (stormwater or groundwater) into a sewer system. This can happen in a number of ways and often results in “sewage system overflows” (overflows).

Inflow and Infiltration sources – Points where clearwater intrudes into sewer systems.

Why is this a problem: Sanitary sewer systems are designed to carry wastewater from toilets, dishwashers, sinks, or showers in homes or businesses to treatment locations.

Unwanted I&I that comes with an aging system adds unwanted clear water to sewers increasing the volume load. This creates a strain. Clear water belongs in storm-water sewers or on the surface of the ground, not in the sanitary lines. An excess of I&I (additional clearwater volume) can lead to overflows during major storm events.

Overflows are a serious problem since it means untreated sewage is discharged from the system into the environment prior to reaching treatment facilities. This is why the EPA is very concerned. Note: This isn’t a Lower Mac or even Lehigh Valley specific issue. But a problem with aging sewer systems everywhere.

Why does Lower Mac have to be concerned right now? (and really almost every single valley municipality) Because of concerns about outflows in 2009, the EPA issued an “Administrative Order” to all the municipalities served by the regional sewer system in our area. The Lehigh County Authority provides that system to residents in Lower Mac.

Here is a very good overview from Pat Lester formally of the Morning Call:
Lehigh Towns could face EPA fines over missed deadlines for sewer work

The order requires municipalities to make significant and costly improvements to sewers to eliminate overflows. EPA has demanded outflows be eliminated by 2014. That has not happened. As of right now LCA and certain LCA municipalities have requested an extension.

How big is the issue?
Lower Macungie Township has 121.86 plus miles of gravity fed sanitary sewers. The total mandated costs to eliminate I&I issues (the major cause of outflow) will be in total astronomical.

We have been paying for awhile now. And we will continue for the foreseeable future. For at least the next 5 years the township has budgeted 250,000 dollars a year to address the issue with plans to ramp that amount up even higher.

To date we have been able to pay for scheduled work without substantial sewer rate increases. This year Commissioners rejected a proposal to increase rates by 10%. To be frank the increase really could have been justified. And further to be 100% honest it’s going to be continuously tougher to avoid moving forward. There were some one time circumstances this year that allowed us to avoid rate increase this year.

Relationship to development:
A question needs to be asked. As clearwater is removed from sewer systems will capacity be increased? If so will this lead to sprawling outward pressure? Next, if so does LCA have it’s sites set on Berks County?

How about further up the South Mountain in Lower Mac? It’s my understanding that at times municipalities have paid for required I&I work with new connection fees. At some point we need a sustainable system. Sewer expansion is the number one driver of costly sprawl.

Basically, should a strategy involve – 1. Remediating outflows by addressing capacity issues. 2. Paying for those repairs in part with new hookups. 3. With new hookups we create more capacity issues. And 4. Repeat… One can easily see the potential problem here.

I&I is just one part of the strategy.
Granted a huge part. And one mandated that we (Lower Mac) fix on our 120+ mile system. But LCA is also looking at other options to also address treatment issues. One possibility is spray irrigation. Another is expansion of Klines Island. These would be costs LCA passes onto township ratepayers. *UPDATE 10/28 I’ve found out that spray irrigation has been ruled out and that expansion of Klines island is most likely. Also to clarify Klines island or potential spray irrigation relates to treatment issues not conveyance. I&I is a conveyance issue.

Bottom line is this federally mandated remediation is going to be astronomically expensive. Much of the scope of the problem and cost to fix remains unclear. While Lower Macungie has been doing a very good job staying ahead of the issue, alot of what’s to come also depends on what how our neighbors respond and how LCA handles treatment issues.

Another item looming with potentially large impacts is Pennsylvania Ms4 program. It is another important area that we as a community need to become more familiar with. Staff has already been doing an excellent job in preparing. I think now the local legislators myself included need to do a better job understanding. This will be the subject of another blogpost within the next 2 weeks.

Your 2015 Lower Macungie Township Tax Bill

Posted on October 21, 2015 by admin

Do you know what a mill is? Do you know how many mills of real estate tax you pay to Lower Macungie Township, Lehigh County & the East Penn School District?

How exactly the assessed value of your home (as determined by the County) and millage rates are used to compute your tax bill?

The word mill means a money amount equal to 1/10 of one cent. One mill is represented in decimal form as .001. Each year the three taxing bodies, Township, County and School District establish millage rates for the upcoming year.

Currently they are:
Lower Macungie Township – .33 mills (0.00033)
Lehigh County – 3.75 mills (0.00375)
East Penn School District – 17 mills (0.01721)

2015
Lower Macungie Residents’ Tax Millage and Taxes

Your property values are determined by Lehigh County. That assessed value is multiplied by the millage rates above to determine the amount of tax you owe on your property. The chart below shows the values of three properties, what the assessed value is for each of those properties and the taxes you would pay to each of the three taxing jurisdictions.

*Note: Lehigh County does not have an earned income tax or other source of funding other than a property tax.

On your township bill you get an additional reduction. Lower Macungie Township instituted a Homestead reduction program in 2015. This applies to all eligible households (must be owner occupied residential) enrolled in the program. (nearly 90% of eligible residents are enrolled). Currently the reduction is set to 25% of medium value.

This means all eligible households saw their assessments (for the purpose of calculating LMT tax bills) reduced by 58,000 since the median assessed value last year was 232,900.

Okay, now that you have all the figures and see just how small a % of your tax bill goes to Lower Macungie Township, below are some of the services you get from the township for your dollars.

Public Works – Including maintenance of 131 MILES of township roads.

Winter road maintenance and materials * Yard waste collection – including free mulch recycling center * Road maintenance-crack sealing, asphalt repairs and materials * Storm sewer inlet maintenance * Street sweeping * Leaf collection * Asphalt paving overlays and materials for 131 MILES of township streets * Street and traffic sign materials, maintenance and replacement * Annual traffic line striping and all intersection markings * Traffic light installations & maintenance

Parks, Civic & Recreation
* Maintenance of 28! township parks * This includes 20 basketball courts, 17 baseball fields, , 15 tennis courts, 13 soccer fields, 5 volleyball courts *FREE public library, township community center *township pool.

An aggressive 30 million dollar 5 year capital plan.
Including items such as: A new aerial truck for the Fire Dept.* New Dump Truck and new 1 ton pickup and plows to further improve winter snow removal times among other benefits* New street sweeper* Video equipped van for monitoring sewer lines *continued addressing of federally mandated inflow/infiltration issues *Sauerkraut extension *Land acquisition and preservation *Park security cameras *Bridge repair

60+ township employees who:
Staff the pool, community center, run rec programs, pave the streets, mow the grass, administration and so much more!

This seems like a lot. But even this represents just a small fraction of the costs to run a township and the value you get for your tax dollars in Lower Mac and the efforts we make to stretch every dollar as far as we can.

The “but for” test & farmland preservation.

Posted on October 13, 2015 by admin

Part of my opposition to the Hamilton Crossings TIF was a belief the township could attract desired development along the Hamilton Corridor without taxpayer subsides.

The majority of Lehigh County Commissioners took a same tact. In hind-site they were correct. Because of that decision County taxpayers will benefit from 100% of the new incremental revenue.

This general criteria is called applying the ‘but for’ test. Meaning, but for a subsidy will a community get desired economic development. In the case of Hamilton Crossings, the answer was yes. Therefore the subsidy un-necessary.

What about applying the ‘but for’ test to farmland preservation?:

With farmland preservation we are dealing with another form of infrastructure. Industrial infrastructure. A type that supports a $17 million dollar economic activity for the Lehigh Valley annually. At that figure we are just scratching the surface. Soil in Western Lehigh Valley is special. Regionally significant in fact. It is a natural resource. Lehigh’s farmland preservation program places the highest emphasis on soil quality.

Farmland is irreplaceable. Once gone, it’s gone. Cannot re-create it. We cannot re-build or manufacture it.

“But for” someway increasing the counties funding allocation there is no mathematical way we can hit the Lehigh Valley Planning Commissions established target of preserving 25% of our available land. This is an indisputable fact. ‘But for’ the funding increase we will lose the land. We will lose this economic driver.

Percy Dougherty and Tom Creighton’s municipal match program is a smart way to increase funding. It’s something I support 100%.

In a climate where we need figure out ways to stretch county dollars further and further this program does just that. This year in particular the increase can be further justified since this would be a re-allocation of Green Futures fund money to in large part what it was intended for. It should not be used elsewhere. Honor voters wishes and apply it to permanent preservation of an invaluable Lehigh County natural resource.

“But for” compensating landowners market value for farmland development rights, we will not hit the LVPCs goal of 25% preservation.

#dothemath when making land development decisions.

Posted on October 4, 2015 by admin

The 33 acre Kohler Tract in Upper Milford Township

If Lehigh Valley municipalities are serious about their long term financial resiliency we have to start doing a better job considering public costs of different development proposals. And do it beyond initial build out and 1st lifecycle of a project. This is called determining a cost of community service (COCS) ratio.

Upper Milford Township is starting to do just that with a 33 acre tract off Rt. 100. Supervisors are doing the math in an effort to determine if preserving the parcel is better off financially for taxpayers over the long term as opposed to assuming additional permanent liabilities associated with a proposed build out scenario.

Basically it’s a return on investment calculation.

Here is the thought process outlined by one Supervisor so far:
“If the Kohler farm is sold for housing construction according to (Rob) Sentner, the cost to educate new students would result in a $2,276,000 school district deficit per year with a total indebtedness amounting to $45,520,000 over a 20-year time-span to educate the new students. All East Penn School District taxpayers would be required to pick up the tab for all those new students.”

“Alternatively, if the township purchases the parcel with as $2 million bond at four per cent interest, this would cost Upper Milford residents much less at $145,428 annually.”

Many residents have strong feelings that preservation makes sense from a quality of life standpoint. And that is important to consider. But there is also a very powerful financial argument.

Continue reading →

Beautiful Drone Fly-over of Lower Macungie’s Kratzer Farm Park.

Posted on September 30, 2015 by admin

For best Prezi viewing make sure to click full screen.

This Prezi is to raise awareness that this large farm property in the middle of the township is public land. A lot of folks don’t know the township owns it or they don’t realize just how big it is.

We also want to let people know that currently there is a proposal in the 2016 budget to draft a master plan for the property. The goal would be to open the park up for more public access maintaining it as a large passive conservation park.

Some goals could be:

Maintain a significant portion in agriculture with permanent protection perhaps a local CSA
A greenway spine trailhead at the house and barn
A restroom facility in or near the barn
Interior trails around the perimeter and linkages to neighboring communities
ADA accessible fishing
Habitat
Permaculture demonstration site
A permanent historical nod to the townships rural history

What are you ideas?

Huge thanks to Fred Zahardrik for the Prezi & Jordan Oplinger for the Drone work, Film and Editing.

Youtube of just the drone footage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8DP4Hu9vdQ

Lower Mac Trick or Treat 2015

Posted on September 28, 2015 by admin

Please be safe!

Halloween Safety Tips from safekids.org top tips

When selecting a costume make sure it is the right size to prevent trips and falls.
Decorate costumes and bags with reflective tape or stickers and, if possible, choose light colors. Since masks can sometimes obstruct a child’s vision, try non-toxic face paint and makeup whenever possible.
Have kids use glow sticks or flashlights to help them see and be seen by drivers.
Children under the age of 12 should not be alone at night without adult supervision. If kids are mature enough to be out without supervision, they should stick to familiar areas that are well lit and trick-or-treat in groups.
Popular trick-or-treating hours are 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. so be especially alert for kids during those hours.

Learn about LMT: Do you live in Brandywine, Penns Meadow, Rolling Meadows or Shepherd Hills? Did you know the 80+ acre Kratzer Farm is township public property? Click here to view a drone flyover video of the fantastic piece of open space.

What is sewer inflow & infiltration, why it’s important and what every township resident should know.

Breaking down your 2015 tax bill. What goes where?

High Speed Rail – Without federal funding states forced to get creative.

Posted on September 27, 2015 by admin

“Without federal funding, bullet train projects across the country have gotten creative.” – Citylab.

That’s the way it should be. Take away clumsy top down federal funding mechanisms. Force states to get creative. End of day achieve better outcomes.

“The Republican smackdown of federal high-speed rail funding was supposed to be the death of the national system of fast trains the White House envisioned early in President Obama’s first term. And yet cities across the country keep trying to make HSR happen.” – Eric Jaffe, Citylab

I am a supporter of High Speed Rail (HSR) in the US. But to use Strongtowns vernacular a top down federal funding source would likely result in an “orderly but dumb” system.

Strongtowns often recites “Carlson’s Law” which states, “top-down innovation is orderly but dumb, bottom-up innovation is chaotic but smart.” Looks like in the case of HSR, a lack of federal funding is forcing states to get creative. That is a good thing.

Some examples:

Florida is banking on value capture and real estate profits. (TOD)
Texas is insisting on private investors.
Illinois is taking an incremental approach

So the lack of a clumsy top down funding mechanism results in incrementalism, private money at stake and insistence on value capture – in other words, all the things you want to hear with a HSR proposal. The items that will go alot futher to ensure projects are successful. And all items that wouldn’t be assured in an orderly but dumb top down framework.

2016 proposed budget LMT & meeting schedule.

Posted on September 22, 2015 by admin

Right off the bat: The budget contains 3.3 Million dollars for Astroturf fields at Quarry Park. This is a carry over from 2015 since the money has not yet been spent.

This will certainly be an issue moving forward. I do not support carrying over this money into the 2016 budget. This will be dissected and debated over the course of the next month and a half. I opposed the original allocation during budget talks last year. Link here: Two Lower Macungie Commissioners oppose budget with controversial artificial turf project

More than any other level of government at the local level residents have the opportunity to shape the conversation. And I want to hear from you.

Over the next 2 months the budget will be examined in detail over the course of 3 or more public meetings specifically devoted to the task. Certainly items will be cut others added. During the course of the public workshops township departments and organizations and grantees like the library and LMYA will defend budget requests. Commissioners will debate the proposal line by line.

Here is the 2016 proposed budget.

*NOTE this is put together by staff and is a yearly “starting point”. The budget will be examined in detail over the course of 3 (or more) public meetings specifically devoted to the task. Individual Commissioner review began last week. I will post more when I have time to digest. Items will be cut. Others will be added. During the course of the 3 workshops the various township departments and community organizations (For ex. the library and LMYA) will defend requests. All meetings are public.

Here is the budget workshop schedule.

What do you think? Questions? Thoughts on the proposal?
Email me at Ronbeitler@gmail.com

Widening of Rt. 22 to start…

Posted on September 19, 2015 by admin

According to the Morning Call

The $64.7 million project, which will stretch to November 2020, will ultimately replace three bridges and widen the highway from four lanes to six. PennDOT is requiring lane closings to come only at night, but planning officials warn that no project this big comes without pain.

Needed and long overdue. However if we continue on the same path we’re on its essentially a bandaid. Moving forward unless we’re prepared to repeat the same conversation in another decade we have to get land use policy under control.

This is because… induced demand is a thing. In the world of traffic improvements it’s been proven time and time again. What it means is basically improvements are forced because of existing capacity issues. Problem is those same improvements just generate more induced demand instead of forcing a self correction in terms of land development practices. This leads to a vicious and expensive circle. 6 lanes today is a band-aid for a few years. But we’ll need 8 lanes tomorrow.

Remember when I-78 the last “big fix” was the end game?

How do we unlock the Lehigh Valley from the vicious and massively expensive circle of induced demand?
Preserve remaining farmland.

Meanwhile we continue to lose the character that makes the Lehigh Valley a special place. The reason so many move here.

Lower Macungie – We’re a part of the problem.

Since 2010, Lower Macungie has rezoned over 850 acres of land for more intense development.

For starters, Lower Macungie will generate 800 more residential units than were ever planned for, nearly 4+ million square feet of warehousing and a couple hundred thousand additional square feet of commercial.

Strategic planning? How can you possibly plan for such a moving target?

Lower Macungie is definitely in part responsible for the expensive mess we are in. But we certainly aren’t alone. Other communities are as well. Moving forward unless we want to plan to throw another billion dollars at Rt. 22 or some other massively expensive capacity project for 8 lanes in another decade we have to get land use decisions under control across the Lehigh Valley. Remember, in a world where state and federal funding is less and less reliable eventually the pain could very well be felt more intensely at the local to fund these improvements. Personally, I think that is the most likely scenario.

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